US values India's human resources: Mittal

Lalit K Jha

Washington, Mar 20 (PTI) Recognising New Delhi as a
reliable and valuable partner, top US officials have told a
group of Indian CEOs that Washington values India's human
resources and wants to take the economic ties between the two
countries to a new level.

"The message that came was the very high degree of
appreciation and value for Indian human resources. They value
Indian human resources. They reassured us many times that
there is nothing to worry and we should not be concerned about
it," Sunil Bharati Mittal, Chairman and group CEO of Bharati
Enterprise, told PTI.

Mittal led the Confederation of Indian Industry's (CII)
CEOs mission to the US to hold the first high level
interaction with the officials of Obama administration.

The delegation was assured that the US wants to build a
relationship with India which was articulated by the Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton during her confirmation hearing at
the Congress.

During a series of meeting over the past two days,
officials of Obama administration and Congressional leaders
told the Indian delegation that they not only want to take the
economic ties with India to a new level, but also consider
India as a reliable and valuable partner, Mittal said.

The delegation got assurance that India would be the
center stage of America's thought process.

On Thursday, the delegation met the World Bank President,
Robert Zoellick; Richard Holbrooke, Special US Representative
for Pakistan and Afghanistan; and the Treasury Secretary,
Tomothy Geithner. They also met Congressmen, Howard Berman,
Chairman of House Committee on Foreign Affairs; and Gary
Ackerman, Chairman, House Subcommittee on Middle-East and
South Asia.

At all these meetings, the business leaders expressed
India's concerns over the voices of protectionist measures,
stressed on the need of Indo-US business ties at the time of
global economic crisis and discussed the present situation in
the subcontinent, particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

On Wednesday, the delegation had met Jim Steinberg,
Deputy Secretary of State at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of
the State Department. At the White House they met Lawrence
Summers, Director of National Economic Council and Michael
Froman, Deputy Assistant to the US President Barack Obama and
Deputy National Security Adviser.